262 vs R3 vs R5

[juddmyers]

I have a 262 and we love it. Have gotten into surfing this year. My mother in law has a 20ft MC surf boat and my boss owns a centurion sv244.(wave is amazing).

I am looking for someone that has first hand experience being in a 262 and can compare the ride and interior space to the R3 and R5.

Wife wants to get the 3 surf but I am concerned about going that far down in size. I have a friend telling me the 3 will ride better than my current 262. Especially in chop but I find that hard to believe.

Thoughts ?

[Big Block Power]

I would compare the 262 and the R7. Can't imagine the r3 being as good but it won't be that bad. Or a R5. You will be ok.
This will be good to follow

[juddmyers]

I would compare the 262 and the R7. Can't imagine the r3 being as good but it won't be that bad. Or a R5. You will be ok.
This will be good to follow

BB, All of my posts are good to follow!!

[tgrace98]

So I came from a 262 and the only thought for me was r5 or r7. Remember after 2007 cobalt started factoring in the integrated swim platform to the LOA. I would say interior space an r5 is very similar to a 262 due to the side walk through and the fact that you don’t step down into the boat which pushes the rear seat a little farther back. R3 won’t have near the storage either.

[Big Block Power]

I would compare the 262 and the R7. Can't imagine the r3 being as good but it won't be that bad. Or a R5. You will be ok.
This will be good to follow

BB, All of my posts are good to follow!!

True. I think you wouldn't want to go smaller than a R5 though. I think for the best surf wave they say the r5 has that. The surf guys should get to this soon.

[juddmyers]

Nobody else ??

[Norris_Boating]

I have never been on a 262 so can't comment. The R7 has significantly more space than the R5.
I would rule out the R3 coming from a 262. It is 26ft right?
The R 7 had more storage than the R5, especially the ski locker. I put skis, wakeboard, knee board, and two surf boards down there at the same time.
I also think the seat behind the captains chair is much more comfortable on the R7 than the R5
I have had 6 college guys on the bow of my boat for an entire weekend and they were comfortable.
There also isn't a legal limit to the number of people who can be on the R7, in case you ever want to go over 14.
Keep in mind that though the wake for surfing is good it most likely won't be as good as the boats that are designed for it.
Travis Marine in Knoxville has a champion skier (Matt) who is also a salesman and does surfing lessons during the summer. I am not sure if there is a big difference between the R5 and R7 wake from the surf but he would know and I would trust his opinion.

[MnLakeBum]

I would agree that the R3 is going to be too small coming from a 262. We have a R5 Surf that we love but if it was our only boat I would have opted for the R7. The R5 is comfortable with 10 on board but anytime we are heading to dinner or for a cruise we take our Marker One and with it’s 9.5’ beam that carries all the way from stern to bow, it has way more room than an R5 or R7.

As far as the wake goes, the R5 doesn’t have as much forward push as a dedicated larger surf boat from Malibu or Mastercraft, but once you are past the beginner stage, it’s an amazing wave. I’ve had plenty of experienced surfers behind our boat this summer and they have zero trouble doing 360’s or 720’s off the R5 wave.

[Macarokks]

***disclaimer— I own none of the mentioned models, but have spent my share of time around them***

“They say” the best surf wave is behind the R3, over the R5 and R7.

No way I would go from a 262 to an R3. Not a chance in hell.

As TGrace said, they now figure the swim platform into the OAL of the boat, but they did not do that on your 262. So your 262 is a true 26’ boat.

I look at the new boats like this, an R7 is a 25.5’ boat with 18-20” of swim platform, R5 as a 23.5’ + platform, and an R3 as a 21.5’ boat + platform.

That said, would you want to go to a 21’ boat?

I know several have traded their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s and I don’t quite understand it. (Sorry TGrace! Although your R7 IS very sexy!)

The 262/263 is (IMHO) one of the absolute best boats Cobalt EVER built.

I asked a friend (employed at a Cobalt dealer) “Why are all these guys selling/trading their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s?!
His response - “Good sales people. Other than that it doesn’t make sense.”

There’s something about owning a newer boat with warranty etc that’s appealing, but if I had a 262/263, it would be in my will for my children.

[Big Block Power]

Macs.
I can see very easy why they go from a 262 to a R7. Huge diff in my opinion. From going to YT's to tgrace98 this past summer I can see why they are making the jump. The R7 feels very large and rides very nice and is on plane in 2 seconds. I think it May even get on plane faster than mine. Plus it's new. It was very easy to move around in it. If I had the choice it would be a easy one as long as money isn't a issue. But hey it's only 80k more than a 262.

[Ytmsn]

I like them both. That's probably why I'll end up with A28 someday. This bridge is rickety but at least the wind is blowing...

[Macarokks]

Macs.
I can see very easy why they go from a 262 to a R7. Huge diff in my opinion. From going to YT's to tgrace98 this past summer I can see why they are making the jump. The R7 feels very large and rides very nice and is on plane in 2 seconds. I think it May even get on plane faster than mine. Plus it's new. It was very easy to move around in it. If I had the choice it would be a easy one as long as money isn't a issue. But hey it's only 80k more than a 262.

I noticed how big the R7 feels inside on a recent 2 hour trip I took on one. So 262 to R7 makes a little more sense. Going to an R5 doesn’t seem as logical to me.

But hey, I’m the guy with an overpowered 40 year old 19’... lol

[tgrace98]

***disclaimer— I own none of the mentioned models, but have spent my share of time around them***

“They say” the best surf wave is behind the R3, over the R5 and R7.

No way I would go from a 262 to an R3. Not a chance in hell.

As TGrace said, they now figure the swim platform into the OAL of the boat, but they did not do that on your 262. So your 262 is a true 26’ boat.

I look at the new boats like this, an R7 is a 25.5’ boat with 18-20” of swim platform, R5 as a 23.5’ + platform, and an R3 as a 21.5’ boat + platform.

That said, would you want to go to a 21’ boat?

I know several have traded their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s and I don’t quite understand it. (Sorry TGrace! Although your R7 IS very sexy!)

The 262/263 is (IMHO) one of the absolute best boats Cobalt EVER built.

I asked a friend (employed at a Cobalt dealer) “Why are all these guys selling/trading their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s?!
His response - “Good sales people. Other than that it doesn’t make sense.”

There’s something about owning a newer boat with warranty etc that’s appealing, but if I had a 262/263, it would be in my will for my children.

I’ll have to measure my R7 sometime. But the guy that bought my 262 put it on a slightly used r7 trailer and it fit like a glove. Didn’t even have to adjust the bunks. So I’m thinking they are a little closer in size.

[Macarokks]

***disclaimer— I own none of the mentioned models, but have spent my share of time around them***

“They say” the best surf wave is behind the R3, over the R5 and R7.

No way I would go from a 262 to an R3. Not a chance in hell.

As TGrace said, they now figure the swim platform into the OAL of the boat, but they did not do that on your 262. So your 262 is a true 26’ boat.

I look at the new boats like this, an R7 is a 25.5’ boat with 18-20” of swim platform, R5 as a 23.5’ + platform, and an R3 as a 21.5’ boat + platform.

That said, would you want to go to a 21’ boat?

I know several have traded their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s and I don’t quite understand it. (Sorry TGrace! Although your R7 IS very sexy!)

The 262/263 is (IMHO) one of the absolute best boats Cobalt EVER built.

I asked a friend (employed at a Cobalt dealer) “Why are all these guys selling/trading their 262’s for R5’s and R7’s?!
His response - “Good sales people. Other than that it doesn’t make sense.”

There’s something about owning a newer boat with warranty etc that’s appealing, but if I had a 262/263, it would be in my will for my children.

I’ll have to measure my R7 sometime. But the guy that bought my 262 put it on a slightly used r7 trailer and it fit like a glove. Didn’t even have to adjust the bunks. So I’m thinking they are a little closer in size.

Not surprised to hear that honestly. Cobalt advertises R7 at 27’6” (and a portion of that is platform) and a 262 is 26’8”. So 262 into an R7 wouldn’t be a big difference in overall length.